(ECNS) --Beijing is advancing a clean energy transformation and selling clean energy to the world, while Washington is pushing oil and gas, risking a loss of leadership in the global energy transition.
China has built the world's largest renewable energy system, advancing wind, solar, hydro, and nuclear power in parallel.
A photovoltaic project in east China's Lianyungang City. (File photo: Courtesy of Lianyungang government website)
By June 2024, China's installed capacity for new energy surpassed that of coal power for the first time, according to the China Electricity Council.
One out of every three kilowatt-hours of electricity nationwide comes from green sources, said an official from the National Development and Reform Commission.
In contrast, on the other side of the Pacific, General Motors abandoned its electric vehicle production plans, investing $888 million in producing V-8 gasoline engines, according to The Wall Street Journal.
Behind this lies a divergence in the global path to energy dominance. The United States continues to bet on traditional energy sources like oil, aiming to prolong the benefits of the fossil fuel era, while China is exporting green technologies such as solar power, wind energy, and energy storage, striving to build a new industrial landscape centered on clean energy.
The New York Times reported that the Trump administration deliberately oriented U.S. energy policy to reinforce global dependence on fossil fuels, promoting oil and gas production.
As the world's largest oil producer and natural gas exporter, the U.S. seeks to solidify its "energy dominance" strategy, reducing foreign dependencies, particularly on China.
However, China is taking a different path. By building a complete green energy manufacturing, technology, and export system, China is transforming from an energy importer to a clean technology exporter, seizing strategic initiative in the global energy transition.
With million-kilowatt hydropower units, deep-sea floating wind power, thorium-based molten salt experimental reactors, and the fourth-generation high-temperature gas-cooled reactor nuclear power plant, China is making steady progress in new energy power technology. It is also the only country currently to have achieved large-scale commercial operation of ultra-high voltage (UHV) technology.
The New York Times further noted that China's auto industry is now widely seen as the most innovative in the world, outpacing Japan, Germany, and the U.S.
"China has automated its factories, installing more robots each year from 2021 through 2023 than the rest of the world combined, and seven times as many as the United States," according to the New York Times.
China's green momentum is accelerating globally.
In Belt and Road partner countries, Chinese enterprises play a major role in clean energy development. In the United Arab Emirates (UAE), a Chinese-built 950 MW solar thermal and photovoltaic hybrid power plant now delivers green electricity to 320,000 households. In Ethiopia, the Chinese-built Adama Wind Farm helps bridge the electricity gap for 300,000 people and neighboring cities. Moreover, China's UHV technology standards have been exported to countries such as Brazil and Pakistan, driving local innovation in green energy infrastructure.
The outcome of the global contest over future energy dominance remains uncertain. However, as the world places increasing emphasis on tackling climate change, the shift toward clean energy has become an irreversible trend.
The U.S. could change course and invest more in renewable energy than before, but the optimal window may have already closed. As the New York Times put it, "There's a race to power the future. China is pulling away."
(By Gong Weiwei)
编辑：王瑜
